But NASCAR and the track face major questions heading into the first short-track race of the season.

The new Gen-6 car has gotten mixed reviews in the first three races of the season. The Daytona 500 was less eventful than previous Daytona races and Denny Hamlin made headlines by criticizing the new car after the second race of the season at Phoenix.

Last week’s race at Las Vegas produced more passing and more action than many races on 1.5-mile track, passing a key test and giving NASCAR and it’s teams hope for the new car.

Now comes Bristol, a high-banked, half-mile oval that poses a big challenge for drivers and teams. How will the new car handle and perform on the tough short track?

Another big question is what kind of race will fans see at Bristol. After the track was reconfigured in 2007, fans saw less action than normal and a transition to more side-by-side and less bumper-to-bumper action.

With attendance dwindling and fans not happy, Bristol officials tore up the track again, taking away part of the outside groove. That led to more action and a more traditional Bristol race in August.

What can fans expect seven months later with the new car thrown into the mix?

And will the same drivers be the top contenders at Bristol?

Here’s a look at the favorites this weekend.

Schedule

Race: Food City 500 (500 laps, 266.5 miles)

Qualifying: Friday, 3:40 p.m. ET

Green flag: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET

Favorites

Brad Keselowski — He has won two of the last three races at Bristol and appears to be the new Bristol master. The champ is off to a strong start with three straight top-five finishes. All that’s missing is a victory. It’s likely to come at Bristol.

Kyle Busch — He won this race in 2011 and has five career wins at Bristol, which is tied for the most among active drivers. He won the very first race with the old COT car at Bristol in 2007, and then infamously climbed from his car said the car of tomorrow “sucked.” Wonder what he would say about the Gen-6 if he won at Bristol again?

Jimmie Johnson — When he won the Food City 500 in 2010, it was a big deal because Bristol was one of the few tracks he had never won at. He has five top-five finishes in his last six races there, including second in August. He could win again.

Denny Hamlin— How fitting would it be for Hamlin to win a week after being fined $25,000 for criticizing the new car? It could happen. Though he doesn’t have a sterling record at Bristol, Hamlin is a good short-track driver and won the August race there — the last Bristol race with the old car.

Sleepers

Kurt Busch — Busch has gotten off a slow start with his new Furniture Row Racing team and hasn’t won since 2011, but if there’s anyone who could turns things around with a win at Bristol, it’s Busch, who, like his younger brother, has five career wins at the short track. Kurt’s last win at Bristol came in 2006 but he can sling a car around the half-mile oval as well as anyone.

Brian Vickers — Vickers makes his first start of the season in his part-time schedule for Michael Waltrip Racing, and it couldn’t come at a better track. Vickers, who has just two career victories, finished fifth and fourth in the two races at Bristol last year.

Clint Bowyer — All three MWR cars ran well at Bristol last year and Bowyer finished in the top 10 in both races.

Marcos Ambrose — Ambrose has just three top-five finishes on short tracks and two of them came at Bristol. He finished third there in 2009 and fifth in August. With the right pit strategy, he could win his first NASCAR oval-track race.

Predictions

Bob Pockrass: Brian Vickers in a mild upset. He had two top-fives at Bristol last year and will have the benefit this year of running in the Nationwide Series race the day before. He's not running for points so he doesn't have to worry about making too many people angry, giving him incentive to think more about winning than a good points day.

Jeff Owens: Brad Keselowski. He seems to have a better handle than anyone not named Johnson on the new car. And that spells trouble for the competition at his best track.